Small parts pouch with self-sealing closure
A self-closing utility bag for holding small articles includes a pouch with an upper pouch portion, a lower pouch portion, a neck portion between the upper and lower pouch portions, a top opening that is maintained in a partially open orientation, and a self-closing mechanism. The self-closing mechanism includes a first resilient strip disposed parallel to a pouch top opening at a location either adjacent the neck portion in the upper pouch portion but spaced from the pouch top opening or at the neck portion, and a second resilient strip disposed opposite the first resilient strip where the first and second resilient strips maintain the pouch in a closed orientation but having a resilient spring action that allows intruding access to an inside of the lower portion while returning to the closed orientation when the intruding access is removed.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to small parts bags and/or pouches. Particularly, the present invention relates to a small parts pouch with self-sealing closure.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There exist a large variety pouches and aprons used by workers such as construction workers, maintenance workers, carpenters, framers, and iron workers. Typically, these pouches and/or aprons are made from materials such as cotton, nylon, leather, vinyl, and the like. Each tool pouch/apron includes one or more pouches adapted for receiving a plurality of small parts, nails, screws, and other similarly sized components that are required by workers for performing their duties. In these types of aprons, the pouches have open tops to allow easy access by the worker needing one of the small parts such as a fastener. The open tops may, at times, allow the parts and/or fasteners contained in the pouch to fall out depending on the worker's movement and orientation. Oftentimes, a worker will retrieve a plurality of parts and/or fasteners for use and, in so doing, inadvertently spills or drops some of the parts and/or fasteners to the ground caused by the simple act of removing the worker's hand from the pouch.
To alleviate this concern, there have been devised pouches that are self-closing. These include a waterproof case that is opened by pressure on two opposite points. Another is a self-closing, snap-open pouch that has opposed transverse creases adjacent the ends of each closure strip to insure that the strips will spring apart under a longitudinal compressive load applied to both strips at the ends.
There is also disclosed a utility pouch having a self-sealing closure. The pouch includes a body that defines an interior space in which items can be stored, an opening that provides access to the interior space, and a self-sealing closure associated with the opening that prevents items from falling out of the pouch. The opening includes a cylindrical cord that encircles the opening. The closure has two opposed pieces of resilient material such as rubber, neoprene and the like that together seal the interior space of the pouch. The closure forms a generally V-shaped cross-section secured within the opening such that the top edges of the opposed resilient pieces are separated and their bottom edges contact each other in their natural state.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe prior art suffers from various disadvantages. In those self-closing bags/pouches that require a longitudinal compressive force at the ends of the self-closing strips, two hands are required. One to apply the longitudinal compressive force to open and maintain the bag/pouch in an open orientation and a second hand to retrieve and/or place small items within the interior space of the bag/pouch. In the self-closing bag/pouch that have a neoprene/rubber closure forming a generally V-shaped cross-section secured within the bag/pouch opening such that the top edges of the opposed resilient pieces of the closure are separated and their bottom edges contact each other in their natural state, the pouch must have a deeper/higher configuration from the open top to the bottom of the internal space to accommodate the neoprene/rubber closure in order to maintain the bottom edges in contact with each other in the natural state.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a self-closing utility bag for small parts that permits opening and access to the internal volume or space using one hand. It is another object of the present invention to provide a self-closing utility bag for small parts that includes a self-closing mechanism recessed from an open top of the pouch.
The present invention achieves these and other objectives by providing a self-closing utility bag for small parts that has an upper pouch portion with a top opening, a lower pouch portion and a neck portion between the upper pouch portion and the lower pouch portion where the upper and neck portions provide access to the internal space of the lower pouch portion. A self-closing mechanism is spaced from the top opening and attached within either the upper pouch portion or the neck portion.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the self-closing utility bag for holding small articles includes a pouch with an upper pouch portion, a lower pouch portion, a neck portion between the upper and lower pouch portions, a pouch top opening, and a first resilient strip and a second resilient strip opposed to the first resilient strip where the first and second resilient strips are attached to the upper pouch portion and spaced from the top opening. The upper pouch portion has a first upper pouch wall and a second upper pouch wall. The lower pouch portion has a first lower pouch wall and a second lower pouch wall. The neck portion is formed between a pouch first side edge, a pouch second side edge and the pouch top opening. The pouch top opening has a size sufficient to allow a user's hand to pass into and out of the upper pouch portion. The first upper pouch wall and the second upper pouch wall are configured to maintain the pouch top opening in a partially open orientation. The self-closing mechanism includes a first resilient strip and a second resilient strip opposed to the first resilient strip. The first and second resilient strips are disposed substantially parallel to the pouch top opening and at a location that is adjacent the neck portion in the upper pouch portion but spaced from the pouch top opening or at the neck portion. The first and second resilient strips maintain the pouch at or adjacent the neck portion in a closed orientation but have a resilient spring action that allows intrusive access to the internal volume/space while returning to the closed orientation when the intrusive access is removed.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the neck portion is formed by the pouch first side edge and the pouch second side edge converging towards each other from the pouch top opening to the neck portion and diverging away from each other toward the lower pouch portion.
In a further embodiment of the present invention, the neck portion forms a secondary opening within the bag and below the pouch top opening where the secondary opening has a size sufficient to allow passage of a user's hand into and out of the lower pouch of the bag.
In still another embodiment of the present invention, a protective liner is disposed on and attached to at least a portion of the inside surface of the pouch lower portion.
In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the first resilient strip is disposed with a hem formed on an inside surface of the first upper pouch wall of the upper pouch portion.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the second resilient strip is disposed within a hem formed on the inside surface of a second upper pouch wall of the upper pouch portion.
In a further embodiment of the present invention, the first and second resilient strips extend over a substantial distance between the pouch first side edge and the pouch second side edge.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the bag includes a bottom or bottom panel in the lower pouch portion between the first lower pouch wall and the second lower pouch wall at a first bottom edge and a second bottom edge of the first and second lower pouch walls.
In still another embodiment of the present invention, the bag includes at least one belt loop attached to the upper portion on an outside surface of the pouch.
The preferred embodiments of the present invention are illustrated in
Bottom 14 extends upward to neck portion 60 at opposed first upper pouch edge 16 and second upper pouch edge 17 forming lower first edge wall 14a and lower second edge wall 14b. In this embodiment, pouch volume 70 is formed by bonding the peripheral edges 14c, 14d, 14e, and 14f of bottom 14, first edge wall 14a and second edge wall 14b to the peripheral edges 16a, 17a of first lower wall 51 and second lower wall 52, respectively. The peripheral edges may be adhered to each other using adhesives, stitching, hemming, or other means known to those skilled in the art. To facilitate carrying pouch 10, at least one belt loop 20 is fixedly attached to the upper pouch portion 30 on pouch rear wall 12. Although a single, wider belt loop 20 may be used, two or more belt loops 20 are preferred.
Turning now to
Also shown is a self-closing mechanism 80 located within upper portion 30 of pouch 10. Self-closing mechanism 80 is spaced a predefined distance below pouch opening 18. Preferably, mechanism 80 is in the range of about 1.5 inches to 2.5 inches below pouch opening 18 and is made of two strips of resilient material such as metal, thermoplastic, and the like opposed to each other where one of the two strips is attached to each of the first upper wall 31 and second upper wall 32.
An important aspect of first upper wall 31 and second upper wall 32 is that there is excess material between first pouch edge 16 and second pouch edge 17 at least above self-closing mechanism 80 in an area designated by reference number 30a while the material to which self-closing mechanism 80 is attached does not have excess material between first pouch edge 16 and second pouch edge 17. It is the excess material that enables pouch top opening 18 to remain slightly open to provide easy access by a user's hand to the self-closing mechanism 80. There are various ways to provide the required relationship between self-closing mechanism 80 and a slightly open pouch top 18. One is disclosed in relation to
Turning now to
It is important to note that first upper outside wall 31a and an upper portion of first inside wall 31b above hem enclosure 90 has excess material between first and second upper pouch walls 16, 17 while hem enclosure 90 does not. Likewise, second upper outside wall 32a and an upper portion of second inside wall 32b above hem enclosure 92 has excess material between first and second upper pouch walls 16, 17 while hem enclosure 92 does not. It should be understood that the side edges of hem enclosures 90, 92 are also attached to first and second upper pouch walls 16, 17. This allows self-closing mechanism 80 to remain in a normally-closed position as shown. Even though
Turning now to
Turning now to
As shown, excess material is used to form lower portion walls 51, 52, which are attached to each other along their peripheries such that a pouch seam 15 is formed from pouch side edge 16 beginning at pouch top opening 18 around pouch lower portion 50 to pouch side edge 17 ending at pouch top opening 18. As in the embodiment shown in
Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described herein, the above description is merely illustrative. Further modification of the invention herein disclosed will occur to those skilled in the respective arts and all such modifications are deemed to be within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Claims
1. A self-closing utility bag for holding small articles, the bag comprising:
- a pouch having an inside surface defining an internal volume, an upper pouch portion having a first upper pouch wall and a second upper pouch wall, a lower pouch portion having a first lower pouch wall and a second lower pouch wall, a neck portion between the upper pouch portion and the lower pouch portion, a pouch first side edge, a pouch second side edge, and a pouch top opening having a size sufficient to allow passage of a user's hand into and out of the upper pouch portion, wherein the pouch first side edge and the pouch second side edge are in a configuration that maintains the pouch top opening in a partially open orientation;
- a first resilient strip disposed substantially parallel to the pouch top opening and at a location selected from the group consisting of adjacent the neck portion in the upper pouch portion but spaced from the pouch top opening and at the neck portion; and
- a second resilient strip disposed opposite the first resilient strip wherein the first resilient strip and the second resilient strip maintain the pouch in a closed orientation but having a resilient spring action that allows intruding access to an inside of the lower portion while returning to the closed orientation when the intruding access is removed.
2. The utility bag of claim 1 wherein the neck portion is formed by the pouch first side edge and the pouch second side edge converging towards each other from the pouch top opening to the neck portion and diverging away from each other toward the lower pouch portion.
3. The utility bag of claim 1 wherein the neck portion forms a secondary opening having a size sufficient to allow passage of a user's hand into and out of the lower pouch of the bag.
4. The utility bag of claim 1 further comprising a protective liner disposed on at least a portion of the inside surface of the pouch lower portion.
5. The utility bag of claim 1 wherein the first resilient strip is disposed within a hem formed on the inside surface of the first upper pouch wall of the upper pouch portion.
6. The utility bag of claim 1 wherein the second resilient strip is disposed within a hem formed on the inside surface of the second upper pouch wall of the upper pouch portion.
7. The utility bag of claim 1 wherein the first resilient strip extends over a substantial distance between the pouch first side edge and the pouch second side edge.
8. The utility bag of claim 1 further comprising a bottom panel in the lower pouch portion between the first lower pouch wall and the second lower pouch wall having a first bottom edge and a second bottom edge.
9. The utility bag of claim 1 further comprising at least one belt loop attached to the upper portion on an outside surface of the pouch.
10. A self-closing pouch for small articles comprising:
- an enclosure defining an inside space, the enclosure comprising: a front side panel with a front inside surface, a front outside surface, a front peripheral edge, and a front opening edge; a rear side panel with a rear inside surface, a rear outside surface, a rear peripheral edge, and a rear opening edge wherein the front peripheral edge and the rear peripheral edge forms a first enclosure side edge and a second enclosure side edge; an upper portion having a first upper edge and a second upper edge; a lower portion having a bottom edge formed by the first peripheral edge being fixedly attached to the second peripheral edge wherein the lower portion forms a major portion of the predefined volume of the enclosure; a top opening formed by the front opening edge and the rear opening edge wherein the top opening has a size sufficient to allow passage of a user's hand into and out of the upper portion of the enclosure; and a neck portion formed between the upper portion and the lower portion wherein the first enclosure side edge and the second enclosure side edge converge towards each other from the top opening to the neck portion and then diverge away from each other from the neck portion to the lower portion; a first resilient strip disposed on the front side panel, the first resilient strip being substantially parallel to the neck portion at a location selected from the group consisting of above the neck portion but spaced from the front top edge and at the neck portion; and a second resilient strip disposed on the rear side panel substantially parallel to the neck portion at a location opposed to the front resilient strip wherein the front resilient strip and the rear resilient strip maintain the pouch in a closed orientation but having a resilient spring action that allows intruding access to the inside space of the lower portion while returning to the closed orientation when the intruding access is removed.
11. The pouch of claim 10 wherein the front side panel and the rear side panel of the upper portion are adapted to maintain the top opening in a partially open orientation.
12. The pouch of claim 10 wherein the neck portion forms a secondary opening having a size sufficient to allow passage of a user's hand into and out of the lower portion of the enclosure.
13. The pouch of claim 10 further comprising a protective liner disposed on the inside surface of the front side panel and the rear side panel of the lower portion.
14. The pouch of claim 10 wherein the first strip is embedded in the inside surface of the front side panel.
15. The pouch of claim 10 wherein the second strip is embedded in the inside surface of the rear side panel.
16. The pouch of claim 10 wherein the first strip is disposed within a hem formed on the inside surface of the front side panel.
17. The pouch of claim 10 wherein in the second strip is disposed within a hem formed on the inside surface of the rear side panel.
18. The pouch of claim 10 further comprising at least one belt loop attached to the upper portion on an outside surface of the rear side panel.
19. The pouch of claim 10 wherein the first resilient strip extends over a substantial distance between the first enclosure side edge and the second enclosure side edge.
20. The pouch of claim 10 further comprising a bottom panel having a first bottom edge and a second bottom edge, the bottom panel disposed between the front side panel and the rear side panel wherein the first bottom edge is fixedly attached to the first peripheral edge and the second bottom edge is fixedly attached to the second peripheral edge.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 10, 2012
Publication Date: Jun 12, 2014
Patent Grant number: 10660428
Inventors: Darrell A. Moreau (Manchester, NH), Andre W. Moreau (Spring Hill, FL)
Application Number: 13/709,096
International Classification: B65D 33/16 (20060101);